Shooting War (updated)

The state Republican Party painted a picture today of illegal aliens, armed with state driver licenses, going into stores toÂ buy rifles and shotguns, but state officialsÂ characterized the scenario as far-fetched.Â

Keying off a remarks yesterday by DMV Commissioner David Swarts to a Senate panel that illegal immigrants could use a license to buy a gun, a “shocked” state GOP Chairman Joseph Mondello issued a release outlining how a non-citizen could obtain a rifle or shotgun by lying about their citizenship on the form they have to fill out a dealer. They would undergo a federal background check that would look for a prior criminal record, but which would not verify their citizenship.

“There are grave concerns that there are not sufficient systems in place to prevent putting guns in the hands of illegal aliens,” Mondello said. “The idea that New York State would in any way aid an illegal alien to easily walk into any local gun shop or sporting goods store and purchase a firearm in violation of federal law is deeply unsettling.â€

Administration officials, who spoke on condition ofÂ anonymity, along with a State Police spokesman, however, said that’s ridiculous (actually, the term one used was “so many serious logical fallacies”).

To get a driver license under the new policy, they noted, an illegal immigrant would have to produce valid ID — which does not have to be a driver license — and provide DMV with their current and past residences. If they then used the license to illegally purchase a firearm, they’d be committing a federal felony and running the risk of getting caught fairly quickly, because their photograph, identity and address are in the computer system.

State Police spokesman Lt. Glenn Miner noted that a person looking to get a gun could far more easily get one, and avoid scrutiny altogether, by buying it privately, even at a garage sale. Rifle and shotgun sales between private individuals require no background checks or official reporting.

“It’s really a stretch,” Miner said.

Update: Spitzer spokeswoman Jennifer Givner added this statement: “This argument is absurd and has absolutely no merit. No undocumented individual will be able to legally purchase firearms in NYS.”